Rohit Sharma brushed off run-out incident, says Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill has revealed what Rohit Sharma told him after their costly mix-up resulted in the former India captain's run-out during the first ODI against Afghanistan, saying the veteran opener brushed aside the incident after watching the replay.

Rohit was looking in ominous touch before a misunderstanding with Gill brought his innings to an abrupt end in the sixth over of India's chase in Dharamsala on Saturday. The dismissal briefly threatened to derail India's pursuit, but captain Gill's unbeaten 84 eventually guided the hosts to a comfortable seven-wicket victory.

Speaking after the match, the Player of the Match disclosed that Rohit had no complaints about the unfortunate incident. "He saw the replay, he said it's fine. Even in the last match that we played against Afghanistan, T20s, he got run out there as well," Gill said during the post-match media interaction.

Rohit had scored 16 off 16 balls, hitting two fours and a six, and shared a brisk 46-run opening partnership with Gill in just 5.4 overs before the mix-up ended his stay. Gill's reference was to an earlier mishap against the same opponents in January 2024, when a mix-up between the two in a T20I in Mohali had resulted in Rohit being run out for a duck in the opening over.

Gill shines as India overcome Gurbaz masterclass

The rain-hit contest was reduced to 25 overs per side, and India initially appeared to have Afghanistan on the ropes after reducing the visitors to 26/3. However, Rahmanullah Gurbaz launched a sensational counterattack with a superb century, stitching together a 116-run stand with captain Hashmatullah Shahidi to take Afghanistan to 194 all out in 24.5 overs.

Gill admitted that India had briefly lost control of the game due to Gurbaz's brilliance. "The way we started, they pulled the game away from us. Gurbaz was brilliant and took the game away from us, but we fought back well," Gill said.

Debutants impress as India take 1-0 lead

India's comeback was engineered by debutants Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey, who claimed three wickets apiece. Gill reserved special praise for both bowlers, highlighting their ability to bounce back under pressure. "Gurnoor, the way he bowled with the new ball and then came back at the death. Harsh as well, the way he came back after conceding 16 runs in his first over," Gill said.

He stressed the importance of controlling the middle overs in ODI cricket, saying maintaining pressure with the ball and rotating strike while batting are key principles discussed in team meetings. Gill then capped off a memorable outing with a match-winning unbeaten 84 off 66 deliveries, while Ishan Kishan contributed 34 and KL Rahul blasted an unbeaten 39 off just 19 balls. Their efforts helped India chase down 195 in 22.5 overs and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

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